HOUSTON, May 16, 2018 (PCW) -- NYMEX crude and products were mixed early Wednesday, despite government figures that showed a decrease in crude stocks.

Crude exports were 2.566 million b/d, a record.

As of 9:55 am CDT, June NYMEX WTI fell $0.29/bbl to $71.09/bbl; June gasoline rose 0.68 cpg to 221.16 cpg; and June diesel fell 0.88 cpg to 224.02 cpg.

Total domestic product demand remained very good, up 1.5% on the year. Product exports rose and are robust. Inventories of gasoline and diesel are well below last year.

Crude inventories fall 1.4 million barrels

The US Energy Information Administration statistics for the week ending May 11 showed a 1.4 million barrel decrease in commercial crude inventories to 432.4 million barrels (“in the lower half of the average range,” per the EIA).

Domestic crude oil production was put at 10.723 million b/d, up 20,000 b/d for the week, and up 1.418 million b/d versus the same period last year.

Imports of crude were up 278,000 b/d to 7.6 million on the week. Over the past four weeks, crude imports averaged 8 million b/d, off 4.3% compared to last year at this time.

Total gasoline imports were put at 721,000 b/d, down from 803,000 b/d last week; for the same period last year the figure was 696,000. Distillate imports were 77,000 b/d, down from 128,000 on the week; the figure for last year was 111,000 b/d (typically the US imports the greatest volume of products to the US East Coast and exports from the US Gulf Coast (with some exports from the US West Coast, and at times, the East Coast).

Total product demand rises 1.5%

Total product demand over the past four weeks was put at 20.1 million b/d, up 1.5% versus the same period last year.

Total gasoline inventories (including blendstocks) were down 3.8 million barrels to 232.0 million barrels (“in the upper half of the average range”), but 8.7 million barrels below last year. Gasoline demand was 9.4 million b/d over the past four weeks, up 0.7% from the same period last year.

Distillate stocks totaled 114.9 million barrels (in the lower half of the average range”), down by 100,000 barrels compared with last week, and 31.9 million barrels below last year. Distillate demand over the past four weeks was 4.2 million b/d, up 3% compared with the same period last year.

Propane stocks are up 1.7 million barrels

Propane/propylene inventories on the week were 40.4 million barrels (“in the lower half of the average range”), higher by 1.7 million barrels on the week and lower by 1.9 million barrels versus last year.

Total US refinery crude inputs on the week averaged 16.6 million b/d, up by 149,000 b/d, to 91.1% of capacity. In PADD 3 (the Gulf Coast) runs were off 0.6 percentage points to 89.1%.

Net exports of all products were 2.467million b/d, up 184,000 b/d for the week, a bullish number. The US typically needs to export products to keep inventories manageable.

While domestic gasoline demand was put at 9.4 million b/d, total gasoline production came in at 10.462 million b/d. Distillate demand was 4.2 million b/d, production at 5.031 million b/d.

Crude exports rise 689,000 barrels

Exports of crude oil were 2.566 million b/d, up 689,000 b/d from last week; one year ago the figure was 1.086 million b/d. --
Robert Sharp